Tag: Write

Posted in Fiction

Out Now

Posted on by L. M. Montes

For those of you who have seen and read my short stories I posted on this blog in the past, as you know, I deleted them off of here so I could put them all together into a collection and publish them. Well…..I published my collection of short stories. They came available on Amazon today February 9, 2024. The link is below.

However, I slightly changed some of the stories that had been on this blog. Plus, I added new short stories never published on this sight. I hope you check them out. Have fun reading.

This collection of short stories holds a mixture of fantasy, mystery, and intrigue, so dive into some mind-gripping strangeness that will leave you scratching your head and wondering. Find out what happens when you are never happy with what you have in The Moving Room. Be careful, you just might find out you’re someone else in Time’s Illusion. Have you ever seen eyes in a pool, and they’re following you? You will in Lights of Fantasy. Sometimes treasures are meant to stay hidden in Time’s Wind. Jump into these and other fantastical stories. Your fate awaits you.

Posted in Prompts

My Mission

Posted on by L. M. Montes

What is your mission?

To serve God according to His will for me. To write books because that’s what I love to do. To live my life.

Posted in Writing

Be the Wind

Posted on by L. M. Montes

Every major change of seasons blows in or out with a type of wind. It’s a force of nature we can’t deny, but we can certainly be a part of. We watch as leaves turn beautiful colors at the end of summer/beginning of autumn, as leaves blow away and leave tree limbs naked and snow takes their place, as snow melts and buds grow anew once more, and as buds flourish into stunning arrays of lush green leaves of all shapes and flowers into color beauties painted by God.

You, too, can be a force of nature with your writing. “Paint” your words across the page as the mood or wind strikes or blows. You can be as strong a force with winds up to hurricane strength with your words, or you can be a gentle breeze depending on what it is your are writing. The choice is yours.

Posted in Poetry

Dive In by L. M. Montes

Posted on by L. M. Montes 
Dive in, to the words,
paint them using your mind
as they travel through your eyes,
plummet down your neck,
across to each shoulder,
float along your arms
to fingertips,
brushing their way across
paper and screen,
and morphing  stories
from idea to creative means.



Posted in Poetry

Inner Run by L. M. Montes

Posted on by L. M. Montes

A mist invaded within
my core to run
and keep on running,
shadows past lay
sunken low
in veiled realms unknowing.


Posted in Description, Emotions, Setting

Description: Nip and Tuck

Posted on by L. M. Montes

In a previous article I wrote on August 14, 2023 entitled, Description and Setting, I spoke about the importance of using description to give the reader a picture; whether seen, heard, or felt. I also made mention of the fact you shouldn’t over describe. Write your seen first then do some ‘nip and tuck’ afterward. Below you will find a list of some ‘nip and tuck’ ideas.

Description TypeNip and Tuck
I viewed the mountains on the horizon.The dark, grayish mountains hovered on the horizon with daggered peaks draped with snow.
Ella walked down the dark street at night.The night sky’s cloud cover rendered Ella’s surroundings along the lone gravel road an inky black and thick with a dewy mist.
The front yard was well kept. Dawn continued strolling down the sidewalk peering at the house number of each. She’d never been to Sandy’s house before. Most of the front yards sported grass in need of a cut. Then she spied the right house. It had to be, since the front lawn stood out like an outdoor museum. She stopped in front of it, glanced at the house number, and smiled. Yup, this was it.
My elbow hurt.I bent my arm, and a sharp, stabbing pain screamed at me.
I opened the old door. The ancient door snarled in defiance, as I opened it.
The two friends fought.Wild fists flew, as Danny and Eric continued their reckless battle.
The nightmare bothered me.I lifted the spoonful of cereal to my mouth but stopped midway. The tap, tap, tap, that echoed inside my nightmare continued to hold me hostage. I jumped at the sudden pounding on the back door.
As you can see in the examples above, your descriptions don’t need to be long at all. As long as they are effective enough to get the job done. Like I mentioned in my previous article, Description and Setting, have someone else read it and give you feedback.
Posted in Writing

So…You Want to Write a Book

Posted on by L. M. Montes

You want to write a book, but you don’t know where to start. First of all, the whole process from beginning to end will take a while. I’m not saying that to scare you away. I’m just being realistic. The upside to this is you will finish if you stick to it. Do not back down. Take a break, yes, but don’t get discouraged. The ideas and creativity will come and go. Jesus is my inspiration. Without Him my efforts are meh.

All that being said, what do you do first? Well, there are some things one must think about and decide on before sitting down at the computer to write. Those things come in the form of questions to answer first and/or things to think about. You will find them below.

  1. Do you want to write fiction or nonfiction?
  2. In what genre do you want to write? If you want to write fantasy, what type of fantasy? High/epic fantasy? Low fantasy? Magical realism? Sword and sorcery? Dark fantasy? Fables? Fairy tales? Superhero fiction? Be specific. If you want to write a romance, there are quite a few of those, too. I just decided to pick on fantasy at the moment.
  3. Who is your reader? Young adult? Children? Older adults? Adults?
  4. Why are you writing the book?
  5. Learn the three act structure of a book (fiction).
  6. Get to know your characters.
  7. Ask yourself ‘what if’ questions. This will help you with creating your story and give you something to build it around.
  8. Decide on the best time of day to write and write everyday.
  9. Explore ideas.
  10. Loosen up your writing and relax.

As you can see from this list, there is much to think about. Relax, take your time with it, and about all…have fun.

Posted in Action Words

Other Words for ‘Walk’

Posted on by L. M. Montes

There are times in our writing a story when we want to use another word for walk, especially if we want to depict a certain way the character is walking. If the character is angry, we don’t want them to walk away. Instead we might want them to walk away angry, but what words can we use to depict the action and at the same time convey the emotion the character is feeling. Simple, don’t use the word ‘walk’. Use something else. You will find a list of other words for walk along with the emotions they represent.

Angrily
stomp
tramp
careen
stalk
flounder
skulk

Relaxed/Sadness
stroll
saunter
amble
wander
meander
ramble
traipse
dally

Excited
skip
prance
with quick steps
trot
hasten

Confidence
parade
sashay
swank
flounce
stride
stalk




Posted in Writing

Rejection

Posted on by L. M. Montes

Whatever remains your focus in life, whether it’s writing or something else, there is always going to be some kind of rejection. It’s part of life. How we work with that rejection is what makes or breaks us. I won’t lie, it won’t feel good at first. It’s human to be disappointed and hurt. The truth is, everyone’s likes are different, so it stands to reason that what you write, or do, will not be for everyone.

How to approach rejection:

  1. Take a deep breath and remind yourself it’s only one person who didn’t like it. You can’t please everybody.
  2. Ask yourself what you could do to make it better.
  3. Ask the person who didn’t like it, what was it they didn’t like?
  4. Use the rejection as a way to improve.

Back in 2019 another author read my first book that had just come out a month prior. He gave it 4 stars and a lengthy review. I was disappointed that I didn’t get 5 stars out of it, BUT in his review he stated what he liked about the book, then he went into what he didn’t like. He was very professional. As I read the ‘needs improvement’ part of his review, ideas began to formulate in my mind about what I needed to work on in my second book. Most of what he talked about had to do with one of my side characters. If I hadn’t had that authors negative feedback, I wouldn’t have known to make those fixes.

So turn your rejections into learning experiences. You will be glad you did.